1. BAYVIEW BY MICHEL ROTH
Geneva, Switzerland
With its alpine meadows, glacier-fed lakes and nutrient-rich soil, Switzerland is a veritable garden of plenty where chefs like Michel Roth are spoiled for choice. At his Geneva restaurant, Bayview by Michel Roth, the Bocuse d’Or chef has mastered the art of culinary alchemy with his artistic fusion of French savoir faire and seasonal Swiss produce. Overlooking the tranquil expanse of Lake Geneva, Michelin-starred Bayview prides itself on its use of produce from the Geneva region, working with producers and breeders who go to great lengths to ensure the highest quality, and follow sustainable farming practices. Today helmed by Chef Danny Khazzar, who made it to the final three of the award-winning TV series Top Chef, the restaurant is a showcase of simplicity, audacity and refinement.
Two tasting menus featuring seven or 10 courses champion the best of regional fare with artful plates and iconic dishes. The more accessible à la carte menu showcases the breadth of Swiss produce and includes a decadent collection of desserts from Pastry Chef Didier Steudler – don’t miss the guanaja 70 per cent chocolate tarte souffle – while the wine list features more than 800 vintages including bottles from prestigious chateaux's including Pétrus and Cheval Blanc. Set in a blue and gold-toned dining room with spectacular views of Lake Geneva and the Alps, this is a quintessential stop on any culinary tour of Europe.
2. M.B.
Tenerife, Spain
Roots run deep in the Canary Islands, where locals have found nourishment in the fertile volcanic soil and teeming waters of the Atlantic, for thousands of years. Tenerife’s culinary horizons expanded when star-chef, Martín Berasategui opened M.B., bringing his singular take on Basque Country cuisine to the island at The Ritz-Carlton Tenerife, Abama resort, in Guía de Isora. Helmed by Chef Erlantz Gorostiza, another Basque native who cut his teeth alongside Quique Dacosta and in the kitchens of El Celler de Can Roca, two-Michelin-starred M.B. takes diners on a journey from the flavours of childhood to an inspired present.
Two signature tasting journeys – The Great Classics and The Great Tasting Menu – blend familiar flavours with surprising textures and tastes, reflecting the characters and ideas of these two culinary philosophers. Both skilfully weave together distinct ingredients from the Canary Islands and the cold waters of the North Atlantic Ocean, with influences from the wider Spanish kitchen and further afield in Europe and Asia. The result is inspired modernist concepts like local red tuna tartar with kimchi sauce, citrus ponzu noodles, crushed ginger and ‘M.B Excellsius’ Osietra caviar, or homegrown Canarian cherry ‘tomato’ on frozen pearls and broken gazpacho gelatin. “In the end, we are creating a memory in a diner’s mind that, given the immediacy of today’s world, has limited capacity,” says Chef Erlantz Gorostiza. “That is the most beautiful part of our work.”
3. AGLI AMICI DOPOLAVORO
Venice, Italy
The Venetian Lagoon, once the heart of the most powerful empire in Europe, still resonates with the spirit of discovery that led Marco Polo on his fabled travels. This same energy has captured the imagination of Chef Emanuele Scarello, half of the husband-and-wife team behind Agli Amici Dopolavoro, a unique dining experience where every mouthful evokes the essence of the locality. Nestled among expansive gardens on Isola delle Rose (Island of the Roses), secluded among the placid waters of the lagoon, this unique restaurant welcomes diners via its own private jetty, immediately immersing guests in the natural world that inspires its two distinct tasting menus.
The first, Giardino delle Rose, is an ode to the restaurant gardens, where gentle breezes create a unique microclimate that supports an abundant crop of wild herbs, asparagus, radicchio and radishes, as well as the island’s eponymous roses and an olive grove where the restaurant’s olive oil is pressed. Expect delicate dishes such as spaghettone with sea herbs and puffed lentils, or risotto with roses and raspberry powder, which celebrate the natural abundance of the island. The other menu, LagunAmare, celebrates the bounty of the lagoon and the Adriatic Sea beyond, with dishes like grilled cuttlefish with lovage or soft-shell crab tortelli with sea lettuce powder, rice and lemon. Destination dining doesn’t get any more evocative than this.
4. LADY HELEN
Co. Kilkenny, Ireland
Lady Helen McCalmont knew how to throw a party. Guests at her legendary soirees at Mount Juliet Estate would remember her lavish generosity and the sense of fun that permeated every occasion, sentiments that continue today in her namesake restaurant, Lady Helen. Set in a 260-year-old estate on a ridge overlooking the River Nore and the undulating emerald hillsides of County Kilkenny, Lady Helen is a celebration of Ireland’s pastoral landscape and the rich produce of her fertile lands and teeming seas. Executive Head Chef John Kelly, who helms the Michelin-star restaurant, works with a network of independent farmers and suppliers from across Ireland to source seasonal ingredients that capture the essence of the land.
In addition to fruit and herbs from Mount Juliet’s own walled garden and the fragrant wild garlic that grows with abundance across the estate, menus are peppered with Irish specialties: smoked Abernethy butter from Co. Down; fresh lobster, scallops and mackerel from Dublin Bay; grass-fed organic veal from Tipperary; regional cheeses from a herd of Friesian Montbéliard cows in nearby Cork; and fresh-picked organic strawberries from a supplier down the road, to name a few. The Signature Tasting Menu (or vegetarian alternative) takes diners on a journey across the land, enhanced with specially selected wine pairings and decadent treats like the estate’s own honey.
